The present invention is directed to an apparatus utilizing an annealing and quenching method for materials or parts composed of materials, particularly for metals or parts composed of metals or for ceramic or parts composed of ceramic (hereinafter referred to as a charge), that are annealed in a vacuum annealing plant or protective atmosphere annealing plant (annealing system or annealing furnace) and are subsequently quenched in a quenching system, whereby the charge is moved by a conveyor system, particularly by a cableway.
Vacuum processing technology and protective atmosphere processing technology have a number of methods for annealing and quenching materials and parts. For these methods and for the systems for the implementation of the methods in the prior art, it is generally a drawback that the time from the finished annealing up to the time of the cooling bath is too long. In systems of the prior art that operate with a fall path for the charge, they are considered disadvantageous in that the fall path is too long.